I’m in Taipei at the moment for the weekend – enjoying the food and perfect temperature. It’s my first time here: this ‘province’ of China is much more developed than the rest of the mainland, traffic more orderly, it’s cleaner, and people appear to be much milder mannered towards each other. Taiwan is, afterall, an entity that is able to function entirely on its own. And with a higher GDP per capita, fully independant financial, defence, political, and judicial structure, it’s easy to understand why the issue of reunification is not that easy to resolve. Who wants to become a subordinate of a one-party state that suppresses political and expressive freedoms and harbours an insanely complicated financial system?
Well, quite simply, if it makes money then many would ask “who cares?”. That appears the sentiment here – China is as much an opportunity for the Taiwanese as it is for Hong Kongers, or indeed everyone else, and people are starting to take notice. Co-operation is improving between the two governments and indeed many Taiwanese businessmen now thrive on the mainland. (Note new year special direct flights still childishly go through Hong Kong air space).
But whether you believe in the ‘one China policy’ or not is a matter of opinion – one thing is almost certain though: until China develops to even close to the level of Taiwan (both politically and economically), I don’t see the Taiwanese giving up their freedom and livelihoods just yet.
